Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


Join the CBR18 Book Bingo Reading Challenge—Now Underway!   

The Food Cart, The Girl and the Community

Noodle & Bao by Shaina Lu

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The story of Noodle & Bao is obvious (the little guy taking on the big guy/the small town getting taken over by big money), but overall it is fun and fresh. There were a few bumps in the flow of things and the animals and human living side-by-side is odd (maybe it is because the people are that type of personalities?) but it keeps things light as we see gentrification at work. The use of details and colors are minimal but important. The extras at […]

Ok I’m bragging, but who will if I don’t? Cannonball #9

The Duel: A Story about Peace by Ines Viegas Oliveira

A Stronger Home by Katrina Chen and Elaine Su

My Dear Sea by André Carrilho

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I was reading picture books recently and found that all had a strong theme, but I was not sure if I really liked them. I knew I liked the idea of them, but did I like how they were done? So, I present to you them and see what you think. All were read via an online reader copy. The first was The Duel: A Story about Peace by Ines Viegas Oliveira, and translated by Rosa Churcher Clarke (due mid-November 2024). The theme sounded obvious […]

The philosophy of tikkun olam

One Small Spark: A Tikkun Olam Story by Victoria Tentler-Krylov

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Recently published (in August 2024), One Small Spark: A Tikkun Olam Story by Ruth Spiro and illustrated by Victoria Tentler-Krylov, explores the concept of Tikkun Olam, which has several meanings, but basically is to “improve your surroundings.” The authors afterwards is important because it not only helps expand on this idea, but allows you to know that while it is told via a “Jewish lens” in the book (authors words), it is not limited to this religion. Many religions and cultures practice this idea. The […]

The year 2025 is going to be busy with fun new books

The Three-Year Tumble: Based on a Korean Folktale by Dayeon Auh

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The Three-Year Tumble: Based on a Korean Folktale by Dayeon Auh and translated by Tim Mohr was read via an online reader copy as it is not due until mid-late March 2025. And I was unaware of this until after I read it and really liked it. But it is worth the wait. Auh’s story is a clever story about how we see things and how our attitude can shape that. The story follows a grandfather who must go over a mountain to get to […]

Family celebration

A Turkish Rosh Hashanah by Etan Basseri

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I was reading A Turkish Rosh Hashanah (via an online reader copy though it has recently been released) by Etan Basseri and thought about The Light Keeper by Levin, Baslaw and Priestley. It is not because they have a similar theme, setting (one is set in Russian, one in Turkey), or even that the main characters are all Jewish, but it just had that feel of something familiar and yet, also different. It was sweet, interesting and a bit educational without being textbook-like. They both […]

Let there be light and community 

The Light Keeper by Sheila Baslaw

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Recently an email pops into my work emails and it says that I have been chosen to read a book in an online reader format. Fantastic! When did I enter/ask for this book?  I could not remember even seeing The Light Keeper by Sheila Baslaw, Karen Levine, and Alice Priestley before. But that would work in my favor as I had no preconceived notions about things.  While I have read the theme of the story before (the idea of being brave), it was new and […]



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